


Long Lost

by marvelmedigeekfics



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-17 15:02:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28727028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marvelmedigeekfics/pseuds/marvelmedigeekfics
Summary: "We used to be friends. I haven't seen her in years." Isabelle said of the redhead comatose in intensive care. She crossed her ankles over the edge of the bed, glaring at Alec standing next to her."Of course you were, explains why I've never met her." Alec glared back at his sister."Shush,"





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Is this a series? Is this me indulging myself? Is this a tiny one-shot that I forced myself to write instead of just imagining it? The world may never know.
> 
> BTW I am sorry if I type Alex instead of Alec! I can't type half the time anyway, so please have mercy on me.

Isabelle and Alec had grown up within the walls of this hospital. Ever since they were 3 and 6, every moment that was not spent at school or karate was spent at St. Lucia's. When they were 6 and 9, they roamed the hallways looking for cadavers. When they were 11and 14, they toured the morgue. Multiple times. When they were 16 and 19, they snuck alcohol into the basement. When they were 22, they each wrote entrance essays to medical school behind the nurses' stations. Now at 28 and 31, they worked there. 

They walked the same route home after 60-hour shifts every instance. Partially for protection, because the streets of New York were not often kind to pretty women, and muggings were on the rise. On this day, a Tuesday in early April, they were both exhausted. 3 traumas, which was not uncommon for New York, but still. But neither was too tired to notice the writhing form in the middle of the pavement. They exchanged a look, that simply said back to action. 

The woman looked similar in age to the siblings, with deep red hair curling around her face, some of it matted to her forehead. There seemed to be no penetrating trauma: no stab wounds, no blood pouring from body cavities, no broken bones, no facial trauma. "Hey, hey, can you hear me?" Alec's voice took on the version that was gentle and comforting and sounded like genuine honey. His bedside manner was impeccable, always had been. At least with patients. 

Isabelle placed her hand on the woman's forehead, which was damp with sweat, and recoiled instantly. "She's burning up. 100, at least," Alec picked her up in his arms, and faintly noticed Isabelle's demeanor had changed from tired to concerned. This was not her normal concern for patients, people in general, but rather for someone she very much cared about. Alec shoved the thought out of his mind, because it was not pressing, and nodded towards St. Lucia's. Isabelle nodded back, still not completely back to her roll with the punches usual demeanor. 

"Female in mid-20s found unconscious a few blocks away. Seems feverish." Alec said to the first nurse that came their way. He set the woman in his arms carefully in one of the empty beds, which was luckily vacated. Isabelle sighed after the nurse hurried off to get a chart. She'd begun with her general exam the second there had been a still moment to do so. 

"Her name is Clary." Isabelle shined her penlight into Clary's unresponsive eyes and then rested her hand on her forehead. "Feverish still," She looked up at her brother, who looked incredibly confused with a look that was a bit annoyed. He undoubtedly had a comment about Izzy knowing the name of their patient and not telling him. But it would have to wait. The nurse returned with the chart and moved on to do her job. 

\--

A few hours later, Alec and Isabelle were still at St. Lucia's. They stood awkwardly in the doorway, staring at each other and at Clary. Clary had not woken up yet, though her labs had come back. Elevated white blood cells, a slight iron deficiency, and a mysterious puncture just below her ribs on the left side. 

"What is your diagnosis, Dr. Lightwood?" Alec smirked at Izzy, patronizing her 2nd-year residency status. She rolled her eyes at him. 

"Infection. Unclear what kind. Treating with broad-spectrum antibiotics. Once her white blood cell levels and fever go down, she can go home." 

Alec clapped twice, startling himself at the volume. Clary as well. She jerked awake and sprang up in bed so fast, she looked like a jack in the box. Both the Lightwoods crossed the room to the terrified patient of theirs. 

"Where am I?" Clary's voice was frantic, and according to the monitor, her heart rate was skyrocketing. "What happened?" 

"You're in the hospital. St. Lucia's." Alec raised his hands in surrender, as Clary threw her legs over the side of the bed. But as soon as she stepped foot on the floor, Alec had her back on the bed. She finally looked at them and seemed to deflate. Her eyes began to water and neither Lightwood was that desensitized to pain that it didn't prick their hearts too.

"Where's Jace?"


	2. Chapter 2

"Where's Jace?" Clary said, her hands clutching the platinum white blanket so hard her knuckles were almost the same color. 

"I'm sorry, who's Jace? Was he with you?" Isabelle turned so fast, her black curls hit her in the face. Alec shot her a look that seemed to say "stop getting involved". Which was too late now, of course. 

"He was supposed to meet me. Where's my phone?" Clary snatched it from the table with an amount of force that had to hurt, based on the condition she had been in just 2 hours earlier. But she didn't wince and began furiously typing. Both Alec and Isabelle could hear her keyboard clicks and ferocious backspaces. Clary finally dialed his number and called him, half of her angry and the other half worried. 

"We should go," Alec whispered to his sister, still thinking about his boyfriend waiting for him along with Mexican food. Isabelle did not share the sentiment and glared at Alec. 

"She's alone. We can at least wait for her mother or Jace. Magnus can wait a few more hours." Alec still looked dubious and didn't sigh until Isabelle crossed her arms and pouted. 

Clary had begun to cry again when her three calls to Jace, whoever he was, went straight to voicemail. "I'm sure he's alright," Isabelle said, her voice smoothing into a sweet tinge like honey, which was a change from her usual brashness towards Alec. "He's probably more worried about you than you are about him."

"He always answers my calls. My phone should be ringing with him calling me back." 

There was a heavy silence in the room only made heavier by Isabelle's stony stare towards Alec. He forced himself to talk, "He's probably driving here to find you because if he was in your emergency contacts we called him. Izzy, please, back me up here." Alec had never been good at small talk with people his sister used to be friends with, even if they were patients that he found in the middle of the street. 

"What about your mother?" 

"She's out of town." 

"Anyone else you could call?" 

Clary shook her head slowly. "Just Jace and my mother. There's no else," Her phone began ringing loudly, interuppting her sentence. 

"Hi, Luke. Do you know where Jace is?" 

\--

Clary hung up about 10 minutes later, and the Lightwoods were still in the room. Only because Isabelle had all but dragged Alec back into the room when he tried to leave. 

"Luke says that my mother is on her way home from her business trip. And Jace is with hi--"

Speaking of the devil, a blond man came barreling into the room and all but tackled Clary in his haste to hug her. "Jace!" The two of them hugged and this time Alec dragged Izzy out of the room. She wasn't alone any more, and there was a very patient Magnus waiting still for Alec at home. 

Isabelle looked back wistfully at the room. "You can find her Instagram at home, Iz." 

Friends or not, Clary and Isabelle had different lives now.


End file.
